Brittany Its Byways | Page 3

on the occasion of the visit to
Cherbourg, in 1858, of her Majesty Queen Victoria. Some 1500 men
were immediately set to work, and, in a few days, an easy carriage-road
was finished, up which the Emperor drove the Queen at his usual rapid
pace. The view from the fort is lovely, commanding the whole line of
the northern point of the Cotentin, from the low promontory of Cape de
la Hogue to Barfleur. The water of the harbour, owing to its great depth,
is of the most intense blue, which we quite agreed with the guardian of
the fort in likening to that of the Bay of Naples. Across its entrance
stretches, for two miles, the long line of the breakwater, and within
were anchored the fleet of our yacht squadron, which the day before

had run a race between Poole and Cherbourg. We took a boat to visit
the breakwater. It is commanded at each end by a fort, with another in
the centre, where the provisions are kept. In stormy weather the sea
washes over the breakwater, and sometimes for days prevents all
communication between the forts, and the supplies consequently are
stopped. Boys offered us for sale the silvery shells of the Venus' ear,
which inhabits the rocks of the breakwater. We afterwards saw them in
the fish-market exposed for sale, and, on expressing some curiosity as
to how they were eaten, the landlord had a dish prepared for us. These
fish resemble the scallop in taste, but are very tough, and require a great
deal of beating with a wooden mallet to make them tender enough to
eat. They are called "ormer," or "gofish." The table d'hôte was very
plentifully supplied with fish, and here, as throughout Normandy and
Brittany, cider, the customary beverage of the country, was always
placed upon the table. It varies very much in quality in different
districts; that of Bayeux is most esteemed.
The next morning we set out for the dockyard. To obtain admission, it
first requires a letter from the English Consul, who lives in a charming
spot overlooking the sea, at the foot of the Montagne du Roule.
Furnished with this, we repaired to the Préfet Maritime, who gave us an
order to be presented at the dockyard gate, where it was countersigned,
and a guide appointed to show us over the establishment. We made the
tour round all the basins and workshops, and saw the canot impérial
used by the Emperor on the visit of our Queen,--a most elegant boat,
beautifully carved with marine subjects. The model of a Roman trireme,
or galley, is in one of the basins, and in the little museum, or Salle des
Modèles, are the two flagstones that covered the grave of Napoleon,
and were deposited here by the Prince de Joinville, when he returned
with the Emperor's remains from St. Helena. The dockyard partly
stands on a spot called Chantereyne. The Empress Matilda, fleeing
from Stephen, was overtaken by a tempest when making for Cherbourg,
and vowed, if her life were spared, to build a church. The ship was in
jeopardy, but the pilot cheered her spirits, and, when gaining the port,
exclaimed, "Chantes Reine! we are safe in harbour." The place where
she landed has always retained the name; and here the Empress, in
fulfilment of her vow, founded an abbey, which was destroyed in the

Revolution. The habitations of the nuns is the present provisional
Hôpital de la Marine; a new one, containing above a thousand beds,
being in course of construction, and a modern church, called Eglise du
Voeu, has been erected in another part of the town in place of that of
the Empress Matilda.
Henry II. held his court in the castle with his empress-mother in great
splendour; it had formerly been tenanted by Duke William of
Normandy before his invasion of England, and, within its enclosure, he
built a church also, in consequence of a vow made during a serious
illness. There are few objects of interest in the town of Cherbourg. The
women all wear the large Normandy cap. In the Place d'Armes is a
bronze equestrian statue of the Emperor Napoleon I., and on the
pedestal is inscribed "J'avois résolu de renouveler à Cherbourg les
merveilles de l'Egypte." In the Library is a curiously sculptured
chimney-piece of the fifteenth century, coloured and gilt, removed from
a room of the abbey. The principal church, La Trinité, is a strange
jumble of architecture. There is some beautiful tracery in the windows,
and a fine boss (clef pendante) in the south porch, now restored. On a
board in the church is an inscription, setting forth it was built in
consequence of a "voeu solennel des habitans de Cherbourg en 1450 de
la délivrance de la domination étrangère"--that